Russia

Communist Sign/Flag

1. Read In Depth p.684 take brief notes and answer the questions (5 points)

A country of Revolutions
Factors to revolution in the 20th century

• peasant conditions => pressures of population growth and resentment against landowners
• increase of tax
• spread of industrial revolution
• increase of advance machinery, decrease need for peasant workers
• intellectual climate
• to gain a greater national autonomy

In Mexico, people lost land to moneylenders causing riots. People in Africa and Asian colonies had educated people work to gain independence. People were anger by the conditions and it provided people with support for new political parties.
20th century: increase of global connections -> economic competition and unwanted wars

What internal and external forces weaken the government of Mexico and China in the opening decades of the 20th century and unleashed the forces of revolution?

• people losing jobs due to advancement in industries
• terrible peasant conditions
• increase of taxes
• protests for independence

What key social groups were behind the revolutions in Mexico, China, and Russia, and why were they so important in each case?

• Peasants, educated middle classes
• The people were so important because they were the one who were affected from the efforts of industrialization in a negative way. It drove them to fight for their independence and equality.
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What similarities and differences can you identify among these three early revolutions in the 20th century?
Similarities

• terrible peasant conditions
• increase of taxes
• protests and riots

Differences

• educated people who are committed to independence
• increase of communist theorists

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Take outline notes on Russia (25 points)

• Revolution in Russia p681-685

Revolution in Russia
MI: Due to war going around in the world, strikes and riots broke out due to food shortages and high costs.

• rioters wanted more food and new political regime
• Soviet: council of workers took over the city and arrested the tsar ministers => ending the tsar's long imperial rule
• Under the rule of the soviet rule the government struggled to rule => Russian Revolution in 1780
• Alexander Krensky: Russian revolutionary leaders, who was happy to see the parliamentary rule, other freedoms and a host of political and legal changes
• Liberal leaders wanted to maintain a war effort and to push back any social reforms to create a stable political structure first
• Revolution occurred in November who changed the power from the Communist part and Lenin as head chief
• This was a great point of time for Lenin were he could change the society by a middle-class rule where revolution would come form an organized group of leaders.
• Problems faced by Lenin and the Bolsheviks
  • signing the peace treat with Germany where they would give up large sections of land
  • lamentations from the Treaty of Versailles
• 1917: Creation of the Council of People's Commissars, with people from all over the nation to govern the state
• Parliament was also shut down by Lenin where he replaced it with Congress of Soviets, he believed that, "the people voted for a party which no longer existed"
• People outside of the nation were amazed at the fact that the nation grew on communist terms
• Internal civil war from 1918 - 1921 was due to economic distress. Soviets vs tsarist generals, peasants, minority nationalities => Lenin redistributed land to peasants
• Economy could not strive due to famine and civil wars

Stabilization of Russia's communist Regime
MI: Lenin took it into his hands to create a better and stable army.

• Red Army: New army under the leadership Leon Trotsky recruited generals and loyal conscripts. The army was used to strengthen communism in Russia. The army inspire people to mass loyalty and the promise of a brighter future

Stalinism in the Soviet Union p698-703

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Eastern Europe after WWII p750-759


The Soviet Union as Superpower
MI: The Soviets plan was to create strong connections around the world to spread their idea of communism.

• the desire for the Soviet Union to regain all previous lost land was to play an active role on European diplomacy
• With WWII going on the Soviet Union create alliances with the West while the industry continues to grow
• Soviets proved protection to Northern Korea, spreading the communist ideas
• 1970s - Soviets gain Vietnam as a new ally allowing them naval bases for the Soviets
• The Soviets became a super power similar to the USA especially with the creation of the hydrogen bombs

The New Soviet Empire in Eastern Europe
MI: Communist idea spreading world wide was going strong for a while, however the attempts to keep movements and riots down were beginning to fail.

• Soviets were spreading their influence word-wide
• 1945 - Soviets were spreading/ expanding into Eastern Europe pushing the Germans back
• However in Greece were they move toward Western ideals and in Yugoslavia a communist regime was form by Toto to be neutral in the Cold War and create a more open minded version of Communism
• During the 1950s the Soviets put a stop to whatever came their way such as the Roman Catholic Church and education and propaganda outlets were created to endorse the idea of Communism
• With the formation of NATO the Soviets continue to form alliances same with the West
• Berlin War: Soviets built the wall in 1961 to control the flow of people
• In Poland and Hungary, new liberal communist leaders became more popular but the Soviets control to what the nations did do => The Communist Political system control to dominate the area
• In Poland a movement for independent labor and Catholic unrest became to known as Solidarity because of the low conditions of the economy
• Even when the economy dropping the Soviet Union continue to provide supplies to other countries who supports to idea remaining a strong military presence

Evolution of Domestic Policies
MI: The growing competition of the United States and Soviet Union, had the Soviet Union remain a centralized government to control to people.

• With the growth of the Soviet Union in the 1940s, Soviet Union and the United States form this competition of technology, and with this it motivated the Soviet Union to be the best
• The political structure control to focus on centralized control with the extension of education, welfare, police operation - young people were rising from the lower class

Soviet Culture: Promoting New Beliefs and Institutions
MI: The Culture of the Soviets have science remained as prestigious while in religion and education limits were placed to allow Communist ideas to spread.

• The Soviets continue to limited culture that was no seen fit for the nation such as limiting the Church's uses and the education subjects. The culture was change so the communist ideas can spread.
• 1917- Communist declared war on the Orthodox church in order to have the idea of Marxist to dominate
• Styles of Western art and literature were also limited but the Russians did promote classical music, and ballet
• However literature in Russia did remain creative and diverse, where some authors wrote about WWII and earlier traditions; Expect writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn was exile to the United States after writing about Siberian prison camps
• Science and social sciences was a great prestige for people to be part of where they believe in the use of rational ideas compared to the West

Economy and Society
MI: In Soviet Union, the economy was still control by the government however new changes with factories and new technology changed the social life of people where new groups participates in higher level jobs.

• The state control basically all of the economy giving NO space to private-own businesses
• living condition did improved however the environment conditions suffered with factories, and mining
• industrialization was a growing trend with work focused more on factory work however agriculture of the Soviets did not recover
• family life altered where more people was working in the work fore and peasants participate in jobs for medicine instead of working heavy physical labors

De-Stalinization
MI: After the death of Stalin, leaders such as Khrushchev took into their own hands to change the political ruling in the USSR.

• After WWII, The Soviet Union had a one-man rule but gradually it was proven difficult so when Stalin died the successor was based on leadership from balanced interested groups - army, police, political parties
• Nikita Khrushchev, the next leader of the Soviet Union told the public he would work on de-stalinization were centralized power would decrease, but even with all he said very little changed except some people were allow to take about the issues
• Khrushchev push for a peaceful co-existence where he told out the missiles in Cuba in 1962 however the economy continue to grow but there was no dramatic breakthroughs
• Military continue to grow with space programs and new technology. With the rise of Muslim awareness in the 1970s the Soviet union prompted an invasion in Afghanistan
• However with the loss of consumer goods, people were drinking where it increase alcohol rates and death rates
• Observers tried to changed the life-style but nothing really changed and with the collapse of communism it was a great down-fall for many people

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The Explosion of the 1980s and 1990s
MI: Efforts from communist rule all were shown from the land and the society of the people.

• Because of intense industrialization agriculture land deteriorated and suffered ecological disasters
• The ecological disasters cause an increase in health problems
• the economic growth stop where many of the resources were sent to the military

The Age of Reform
MI: With Mikhail Gorbachev in power, he changed the government to fit the idea of a newly changed nation to keep up with the rest of the world.

• Mikhail Gorbachev new leader changed the government still with the uses from the basics of Stalin
  • made use of a more Western style of clothing
  • encouraged open press - people would be able to engage in political issues
  • urge for a reduction of the production of nuclear weapons
  • 1987 he ended war in Afghanistan
• glasnost: policy of openness issue by Gorbachev where he try to create freedom however many people criticize the idea of being open
• perestroika: economic reconstruction. This was put in because Gorbachev saw that isolation of the nation limited their technological advances and now people are able to own private businesses
• Gorbachev also encouraged people to reduce their drinking because with this it would create a better economy
• New Constitution was made were it was not based off of Communism
• New issues b/w men and women sprung up where Gorbachev encouraged women to go back to the "old fashion ways"

Dismantling the Soviet Empire
MI: The once large USSR had Eastern European nations work their way into independence from them.

• Smaller states in Eastern Europe were on its road to independence steering away from Communist rulings
• Poland, Hungary, work on gaining its independence from the Soviets in the 1980s
• in 1990 the Berlin Wall was destroy were it reunited Germany once again and non-communists won the free election
• Bulgaria and Albania however did move away from Soviet control however continue with the use of the Communist Party

Renewed Turmoil in the 1990s
MI: In the 1990s people were showing hate towards the new changes of the economy and the work of the Russian Republic took down Gorbachev.

• Summer 1991 it shown that in the Soviet Union some people continue to hate on the idea of decentralization
• With Gorbachev authority weaken from the coup a Russian Republic took over the nation where in 1991 leaders such as Boris Yeltsin declared the end of the Soviet Union
• Boris Yeltsin became president of Russia however the economy was still unstable and tensions were rising
• Boris Yeltsin's leadership ended up badly with a civil war b/w rebels and military repression
• New President Vladimir Putin in 1999 vowed that he would clean up the corruption - government with democracy

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3. Complete a leadership analysis of either Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin or Nikita Khrushchev (5 points)

Name of Leader: Nikita Khrushchev
Lifespan April 15, 1894 – September 11, 1971	Title: Chairman/Premier
Country/region: Soviet Union/Russia	Years in Power September 14, 1953 – October 14, 1964
Political, Social, & Economic Conditions Prior to Leaders Gaining Power Communist Party, the government is controlling all Economy is not prospering Areas of agriculture is destroy due to industrialization Famine was running high
Ideology, Motivation, Goals: To restore Russia Destalization – to rid of the communist ideas Peaceful co-existence with other nations Better military program
Significant Actions & events During Term of Power Pull out missiles in Cuba = > peace People were drinking more => higher death rates Space programs were growing Freedom of arts Eastern Europe countries were slowly gaining their independence
Short-Term effects: Better economy conditions Military program & military strength	Long-Term Effects Space program effects Peace between other nations

4. Write a thesis statement for the following questions (10 points)**

• Analyze the changes and continuities in Russian political structure from 1914 to the present

At the beginning of 1914, Russia was a monarchary where it had a tsar ruler, however it shifted to a communist rule in the 1930 under the leadership of Joesph Stalin, but when times got bad, the communist party ended in the 1980s where Russia is currently democractic.
Add global context -> spread of communism

between 1914 and the present russian society changes in 2/3 main ways women gain greater role, greater participation in politics however ___, remained the same. GLOBAL CONTEXT.

• Analyze the changes in Russian Society from 1914 to the present

Russian society was always a low-class life where people suffered from terrible living conditions, but with industrialization during the 1940s people began to work in factories where people were able to get jobs, however the society still have a high percentage of poverty; except people are able to find jobs and make a standard amount of living.
society: gender roles, participation in politics, the roles of the people, social classes